Acoustic Steel String Guitars

The modern steel string guitar is designed for a clear top end and a strong bass. This sound is good for chords but is not very suitable for melody or lead playing.

My guitars are designed to have a loud balanced tone that is continuous across the whole range like a good mandolin or violin. This is a big asset for fingerpicking, lead playing and for studio recording.

 

Recordings are on my audio page

I describe my current guitars as steel string classicals because I am after the punch, clarity and note separation that defines a good classical guitar. These guitars give a full sound with low tension strings, which makes them excellent for fingerstyle playing. This full size guitar fits into a classical case.

 

This prototype all Blackwood short scale guitar is designed for a dry fingerpicking sound.

In the short scale version the neck is 1 fret shorter and the body is slightly smaller. The acoustics of this guitar give it the power of a full size but without a full bass. I actually prefer this size as the lack of a big bass makes it more suitable for stage and studio.

Because of the efficiency of the soundboard design, the short scale does not mean a loss of volume. In fact, all my guitars can be capoed up high without any tone or sustain loss.

Another advantage of short scale guitars is that the strings are a lower tension without having to use thin gauge strings. To your fingers, it feels a lot like playing a nylon string.

 

These multiple sound holes go with an internal bracing system that connects the sides to the neck with no crossbrace. Replacing a square soundboard with a teardrop shaped one creates more frequencies both across and with the grain. Sound waves travel at a slower speed across the grain than they travel with it.

(This picture shows just the tone ring. not the final bracing)

 

I don't currently make cutaway guitars, but by using a low profile "spanish heel" construction, and joining the neck at the 15th or 16th fret, my designs have better thumb access than a cutaway.


More info and specs

My guitars are currently made from Tasmanian Blackwood with WR Cedar or Blackwood soundboards. Fingerboards are Indian Rosewood. Bridge is Blackwood or Rosewood. Full scale length is 644mm and short scale is 608mm.

My standard string spacing at the bridge is 58mm between E strings. (about classical guitar standard) The pickups I use are custom made K&K. They have a classical width, but are balanced for steel strings. I charge $140aud to supply and fit it.

My standard nut size is 44mm (about 7.5mm between strings) which is slightly wider than steel string width but not as wide as a classical. These widths are my optimum for speed and accuracy but can be altered for individual needs.

I put fret markers on the side of the fingerboard and not on the front. I have always objected to dots on the front of the fingerboard on the basis that if you can see them, you are holding the guitar badly.

For technical info on internal design, check out my bracing page.